"Sick"

We're straight into episode two with another no-messing around, impressively cold opening. I loved how the convicts were left with just Hershel's amputated leg in a pool of blood after their shell-shocking interruption.

The cast regulars

Lori and Rick seemed to be on the right footing again, with her comforting "you're not a killer" speech and admittance that she was a "shitty wife". But their quiet moment together later – when Rick signed off the conversation with an extremely hard-hearted "We're awful grateful for what you did" and a token gesture of a hand on her shoulder – was more hurtful than any zombie bite. Harsh stuff.

Saving Hershel's life and dealing with the prisoners gave them all plenty to do: a good distraction from continually complaining about Rick's leadership. And this was another fine week for the increasingly useful Carol who, it turned out, had received a little medical training from Hershel. Her idea to use one of the plentiful zombies as an anatomical learning tool for dealing with Lori's sure-to-be-problematic childbirth was inspired. But who – or more likely what – was watching her? Carl, meanwhile, appears to be entering his difficult teenage years a little early: it looks as if he's not going to put up with being treated like a kid for much longer.

New characters

Initially it seemed as if there were plenty of new survivors to be added to the cast. But by the end of the episode the five convicts had been whittled down to just two: Axel and Oscar. And even their future is far from guaranteed.

(According to IMDB, the guy with the stylish moustache is Axel, while the ones that didn't last are poor old Big Tiny, Andrew – left in the zombie-filled exercise yard by Rick – and Tomas, the troublemaker with the spider tattoo.)

The convicts were thinking in the same manner as 10 months ago; believing that society still existed and help was on the way. But they were too slow on the uptake, locked into a closed-mind prison mentality that proved their undoing: their fighting style was pure "prison riot", which isn't much use on a zombie.

Was Tomas really trying to kill Rick when he threw that zombie at him or testing to see how tough he was? Either way it was not behaviour that could be tolerated in a zombie-filled world, so he got a well-earned machete to the head (echoes of Romero's Dawn Of The Dead there). Axel and Oscar are sure to be interesting: they may claim to be harmless … but Axel looked expert with that shiv.

Surviving

The relentless grind of continually moving to avoid herds of walking dead has really taken its toll on the survivors. They had enough human decency left to play fair with the immediately aggressive prisoners, even though they were clearly more trouble than they were worth. But they have limits – and the breaking point seems to be reached very quickly. When faced with Tomas, the old Rick would have talked about the situation and possible outcomes for several episodes: the new proactive, worn-out Rick doesn't have that luxury. New Rick makes for better television.

Zombie of the Week

For a while it looked as if it was going to be Hershel – surely the kiss-of-life technique should be excised from medical books in a post zombie-apocalypse world? But the best zombie gag was the handcuffed prisoner walker who forced his own hand off to free himself from the cuffs – leaving a sharp bone weapon that proved Big Tiny's undoing. It looks as if criminal zombies are slightly more shifty than the regular, law-abiding ones.

So how was it for you? It was more like part two of the season opener than a standalone instalment, but it looks as if next week we're away from the prison and off rejoining old friends and meeting more new characters. Maybe these ones will be able to stick around for a bit. The subject of comic-related spoilers cropped up a few times in the comments last week. Such things really should be avoided or at least clearly marked, but on that topic it should be noted that the prison events played out differently on TV from in the comics.

Phelim O'Neill's episode blog: Three of our leads took a roadtrip, and the atmosphere in the car was chilly to say the least. But back in King County, we encounter a much-missed friend from the first series

Phelim O'Neill's episode blog: We're building towards a big finish, and it's all kicking off. Before we anticipate next week's season finale, let's pause to reflect on the sad demise of Merle – an unforgettable character, well played